Meet Vixen.
This precious little baby was enjoying the view of all the flea market goings on from the privacy of her own stroller.
I met her yesterday along with her parents who were so kind to let me pet her and try to snap a photo. Two things you can’t tell from this photo are that Vixen has stunning green eyes and her fur was unbelievably soft.
What a fabulous life she must have.
We encountered some characters yesterday but none more memorable than this little Vixen!
Around here, there’s a lot to say and nothing to say about how my time has been occupied and where my thoughts wander. Sunsets are welcome as are good books, long weekends and days when I don’t even consider turnjng on the tv.
Around here, I’m trying hard to dial back my stress levels and all around busyness and am avoiding troubling situations when possible. I’m trying to drill to the core of some health issues and am starting to feel like that is a lost cause.
But, around here, we don’t quit and we don’t lose hope. They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results. That may be the case but I’m convinced it will work one of these days.
Around here, Scout is suddenly sleeping very close to me at night and I’m drinking in the warmth of his little body and the purrs and soft snores that lend such comfort.
Around here I’m still thinking about the wonderful hike I took Saturday and about how lucky I am to live in a place where nature is so accessible to the public.
Around here I’m still thinking about the art we saw, the book shopping we did, and the great pizza we had from a little place in Columbus on Sunday. These handmade prints are accompanied by an old recording of natives speaking that sent shivers down my spine.
I like art that feels meaningful, that I can find a connection to so it’s not just something on a wall but something I will remember.
What a nice day that was.
Around here, it has been windy and cooler than normal. I’m bracing for the summer that’s to come and thinking about ways I can lean into the misery and try to enjoy it. Stay tuned.
Most of all, around here, I’m thinking about the sacrifices made by the brave men and women who have served our nation over our storied history. We are a young country and one with a government prone to mistakes but I will always be grateful for those who answered the call to serve our nation and I am proud of our military.
I didn’t do anything patriotic this Memorial Day weekend other than think about this very topic, admire the flags our local volunteer firefighters put out, and watch the National Memorial Day concert on PBS.
Nonetheless, I have something to say. If you are reading this and you are a veteran or active duty military, I want you to read these words:
Thank You For My Freedom.
Around here, your sacrifices mean everything.
Scout has spent most of the last 36 hours or so either sitting next to me or resting where he can keep me in sight. That’s fine by me. You see, we’re both a little paranoid after something that happened Saturday night.
He’s a house cat. I found him as a baby, roaming the streets of the village where I work. He’s never been outside uncontained and unsupervised since that day and is quite happy to be secure here at home.
After a long day out and about Saturday, I came home to find my back door hanging wide open and Scout was not waiting for me in his usual spot.
They say that when you think you’ve been robbed or that someone’s in your house, you shouldn’t go in. I was conscious of this but I had Adam for backup and I didn’t think twice about barging in.
Luckily, Scout was waiting for me to find him in his safe space, in the bedroom, and purred loudly when I picked him up.
There were no signs of anything missing or moved. No signs that anyone had tampered with the door.
Something had come loose in the door knob and it had come open. I don’t believe it was open long. Actually, Scout has a habit of hopping up on the stool next to the door and stretching his body over to rest one paw on the door knob and the other on the window. I’m pretty sure it came open under his weight and he very smartly ran to safety.
Regardless, things could have turned out much differently. I could be telling you that my little Scout was missing.
The last eight days have been hard for a variety of reasons. I am tired, frustrated, angry, and tired of feeling put upon. But yesterday, I habitually reminded myself that no matter how annoyed/angry/tired I may be, at least my Scout isn’t lost.
This is what matters. The rest is beyond my control.
I know it freaked him out too because he’s staying close and letting me pick him up anytime I wish. In fact, I periodically pick him up and pack him around, telling him what a good, smart boy he is and how proud I am of him for being so brave and smart.
He’s humoring me but will eventually get sick of all the extra affection. Until then, I’ll give him extra ear scratches and will fly him around the house like Superman as much as possible.
Look after your furbabies, friends.
I occasionally find myself standing in a checkout lane holding a coaster, lotion or tv remote that belong on my nightstand. You see, Scout enjoys knocking things down to watch them fall. Sometimes those things fall on the floor but they often land in my open purse to be discovered later.
He’s a cat and that’s the sort of thing cats enjoy. I just call them “presents.”
Yesterday I was digging through my purse at work only to discover he had left me something else this time – one of his beloved catnip filled mousies.
You can tell it’s well loved. I’m honored he would trust me with this treasure and it brightened my day.
The little things really do make all the difference!
Scout watched with interest last night as I finished decorating the Christmas tree with ornaments from my travels. This is a fun tree because most of the ornaments come with a postcard featuring a vacation memory. It’s wonderful reliving my travels while looking forward to the holiday season.
For some reason, this is a fun tree for Scout too. While he simply naps beneath the other Christmas tree, he enjoys removing the ornaments from this one.
On the one hand, I’m glad he ignores the other one but would love to discuss with him why the decorations on this tree are so appealing.
If only cats could talk.
I fully expect to find ornaments all over the house tonight. He has a few favorites to knock down and bat around the room but he’s pleased to grab basically all of them if I turn my back!
I keep telling him he should be good because Santa Claws is coming to town but he thinks he’s already a purrfect angel and doesn’t understand the fuss!